


The Baby Simulator

by StormyNight108



Category: RWBY
Genre: Bunch of nerdy dorks, F/M, Fluff, Warning for cuteness and fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-10
Updated: 2015-12-26
Packaged: 2018-03-06 22:35:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3150824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StormyNight108/pseuds/StormyNight108
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Blake Belladonna didn't even know that Beacon had a Home Economics class, let alone why she of all people had to get dumped into it. It's not like she'd be going into a mundane life after graduation day. Either way, she decided that she could handle one semester of learning this stuff. And to be honest, she probably would have enjoyed the class too had it not been for the Baby Simulator Project.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Culinary Arts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Having some glitch troubles with the notes, so I apologize if anything seems weird about them or if they seem to be on the wrong chapters. I'll figure it out. Hope you're enjoying the story!

Beacon Academy is a combat school. This, in itself, is obvious. The Academy is prestigious, difficult, and only made for the world's top class fighters. Their focus on combat and aura gives each generation after the last many ample opportunities to become the greatest and strongest warriors to ever live in Remnant.

So why, Blake wonders as she leans forward on her desk, is there a Home Economics class available here?

By no means did she want to take the class. No, this semester should have been filled to the brim with combat training and Remnant History classes. Unfortunately for her, the Academy required one Extra Curricular class in addition to her prestigious combat classes.

And she just so happened to be one of the last applicants for her schedule. So, the only other opening for an extra class was Home Ec.

The first day she walked into the class wasn't so bad. Blake had been worried that she wouldn't know any of the students in that class, but as it turned out, Sun Wukong was in there with an open seat on his right. She took it as soon as she spotted it, greeting Sun as she did so.

It did strike her as peculiar that he was in here; he didn't seem the type to care about this stuff. When asked about it, he simply shrugged and mentioned something about being dumped into the class, and that he didn't want to go through the bother of changing it.

He had avoided her eyes when he said it, though.

Blake grinned when he wasn't looking.

A lot of the students, Blake noticed, didn't like admitting that they wanted to be there. She got it though. They're in a highly advanced combat school; no one wanted to admit it if they want to take a class on mundane stuff like nutrition and cooking. And Blake sensed that Sun was one of those students.

Blake didn't share that interest. No, she did not want to be there. She wanted to get off her rear and get back to training, or get back to learning about Remnant History or Dust techniques. Even listening to another one of Mr. Port's stories would have appealed to her more. Anything but learning about a mundane life she will never live.

However, if she was being honest, it wasn't so bad at first. She and Sun paired up for most of the projects, and even though she tended to get lost a lot, Sun helped the both of them pull through. Their third project consisted of baking some type of pie. Blake hadn't really been paying attention that day; there was way too much on her mind.

It was Sun to the rescue though, because he gave her orders like "Put two cups of sugar in the bowl" or "Set the oven to 365 degrees." while he'd do his share of the work on the other side of the table. That was easy. Straight-to-the-point orders she could do. She told herself to thank Sun later for the extra effort to keep her on track instead of pointing out that she hadn't been listening to the teacher.

Their food didn't turn out bad, either. When finished they were allowed to kick back and eat it, sharing friendly conversation over the counter while they did so. It was... nice. Relaxing. Blake didn't get this often.

Their pie was half finished when she zoned in to what Sun was saying, and she leaned back in attempt to pay attention to his story. "...So I told Scarlet not to touch it, but you know him. Doesn't listen to a word we say." Sun said between mouthfuls of pie. "I mean, nothing happened when he did end up touching it, but one day Sage and I are gonna say 'No, Scarlet, don't touch that' and he's not going to listen, and what's going to happen?" Sun throws his hands up in the air, one hand holding the fork with a piece of pie embedded in the end. "He's gonna regret it, that's what. And I'm not gonna be the one cleaning up the mess he makes from it, y'know?"

Blake shook her head with a small smile, stuffing another tasteful piece into her mouth. She was totally content with letting him ramble on if it meant she could eat the majority of their pie. Sun seemed pretty content to talking anyway. Blake still nodded and smiled when necessary, and eventually, they had finished off the food.

"Ruby's going to kill me." Blake laughed after a moment, leaning back in her chair with crumbs at the corners of her mouth. "I told her I'd save her a piece."

Sun laughed and picked up the empty pie plate. "You should have told me. I could've put a slice away."

"I'll save her something next time." She promised to herself, getting to her feet to help Sun clean up their area. "What's the next project?"

"I think we're making cookies next." Sun replied, and Blake smiled to herself. Cookies sounded great. And Ruby loved those.

The classroom was still buzzing with life as the students finished up their own pies, and it was just about time for the class to end. Blake and Sun exited the class together, said their goodbyes, and parted ways.

This class wouldn't be too bad, she decided that day.

As the weeks went on, it tended to follow the same pattern. And yes, she saved cookies for Ruby the following week, who had let out a loud squeal and a "Blake, you're the best!" before consuming the entire handful of cookies in under a minute in front of her.

Blake and Sun got to know each other quite well during the course of the semester, and Blake always enjoyed being around him. He always managed to make her laugh, even when she was having a bad day. His personality accommodated for that easily, she supposed. Either way, it was a great feeling to enjoy a class she thought she would loathe the entire semester. 

And she would have enjoyed it all the way to the end too, had it not been for the Baby Simulator project.


	2. The Assignment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, thanks for the Kudos! Here's where the story really starts, and I decided that this story's gonna need another chapter because I have a lot of ideas for it. Hope you enjoy!

The day the assignment had been given out had actually started out as a good day. Blake had some leftover brownies from the day before's project, and when Sun met up with her in front of the class, they split them evenly between themselves and snacked at their desks until the class started. Those were really good brownies.

"Today we'll be stepping away from the culinary projects." Was the teacher's way of starting the class, her short brown hair swinging as she turned. A few of the classmates seemed disappointed at the news, including Blake and Sun, and the entire class seemed to collectively drop their shoulders. "And I'm going to spend today explaining what we are going to begin."

The teacher, Ms. Russet, stepped behind the counter and reached down into the cabinets behind it. A few of the students leaned forward in their chairs to see what she was getting, but it wasn't necessary, because seconds later she pulled up a pink baby basket with a plastic baby inside, wrapped up in a blanket.

She didn't say anything for a few moments, leaving the class to stare and wonder. Blake cocked an eyebrow. Sun stiffened beside her and let out a soft, unenthusiastic "Oh" before leaning back in his chair.

"What is it?" Blake whispered, but he didn't have a chance to answer before the teacher went on.

"We are going to begin the Baby Simulator project, starting today. Some of you may not know what this is, but many of you have gone through the experience of this project when you were younger. Say about eleven to thirteen years of age. That project lasted about four days, but this one will last two weeks.

"Each of you will be paired with a partner, and the both of you are going to care for your assigned child." From beneath the counter, she pulled out several more baskets, one after the other. The class only continued to watch in silence. "This plastic doll must be treated as if it were an actual child. It will get hungry, it will need diaper changes, and it will cry. If any of you mistreat your child or forget to care for them," Ms. Russet removed the clothing covering one of the baby's backs, "This glowing blue bar implanted in it's back will decrease. Once the baby is returned to me after the two weeks are up, this bar will determine your grade."

Blake's hands were gripping the desk in a vice. Two weeks of caring for a child while keeping up with all of her responsibilities? She gritted her teeth together, preparing to raise her hand, but someone in the back of the room beat her to it.

"Ms. Russet?" The voice said, drawing the attention of the entire classroom. Blake and Sun both turned to look at the small, blue-haired girl in the back of the class. "Um, with all do respect, I don't see how this is a necessary lesson to teach hunters and huntresses. Most of us won't get tied down into families, we'll be dedicating our lives to this job, right? Most of us won't have children."

"Correct." Ms. Russet replied, gently putting the baby back in the basket. "However, while many of your combat classes teach you how to punch hard or kick fast, many of the lessons you learn lack gentleness. Do not forget who you are doing this career for."

Ms. Russet began to pace, her hands moving as she spoke. "You are training to protect innocent lives and innocent people. A child is the purest form of innocent life, and if you are capable of caring for one, you are worthy to caring for and protecting other innocent lives. Think of it this way. If a child gets separated from it's family and is surrounded by Grim in the middle of nowhere, would you know what to do? Would you know how to hold the child and protect it while fighting off your surrounding enemies? Would you be able to care for it until you return them to their parents?"

No one in the class spoke, but Blake was feeling way too hot for her own skin. She couldn't do this. There was no way she could do this. She swallowed thickly and glanced at Sun, who shook his head in response and leaned forward.

"I had to do this project before." He whispered.

Blake leaned closer to listen without drawing attention to themselves. "And? How'd you do?"

"It was hard. I don't remember much of it, though." He replied, downcast, and Blake's heart sank.

"Now," Ms. Russet started again, looking over the table of plastic infants. "This will be a paired project. Each of you grab a partner, and for the next two weeks, this plastic child will be treated as if they were your own shared child. Only the two of you may care for them; you are not allowed to give your baby to someone else to take care of."

Sun and Blake exchanged a glance. It was pretty much implied that the two of them would be partners, but at the thought of them sharing a child, both blushed and glanced away awkwardly. Okay, so this was going to be a thing.

Ms. Russet had already begun passing the children out. When she gave the basket to the duo, Blake opened the card on the outside.

"She's female, and her name is Eliza." Blake told Sun as she read the card of their child, looking at the baby wrapped in a pink blanket.

Sun huffed, and neither touched the basket until the teacher began to go over what they would have to do. Each child came with mini-diapers (non-disposable, they don't actually get dirty), and a bottle.

"The baby will cry and move it's arms when it wants something. There's a subtle difference between each cry depending on what it wants from you, and that's for you to figure-"

A cry suddenly burst out from the far right of the classroom, making everyone jump. Blake snapped her head around to see two of her classmates physically flinch at the sound of their baby already beginning to cry, their hands flailing towards the bag of stuff.

"What-get the bottle, get the bottle-" The first girl said, while her friend fumbled for the thing and stuck it in the mouth of the baby. It did nothing to cease it's crying, and the two stood up in their seats.

"Change his diaper." Ms. Russet said in the calmest voice possible.

Both of the girls' heads snapped up to her before they removed the diaper and managed to fit a new one on, occasionally arguing about how to fold it around the legs. Once the baby stopped crying, they both sat down with loud sighs, their chairs scooting backwards as they threw their weight against them.

Ms. Russet cleared her throat, continuing on with the lesson. Apparently, one also had to burp the child after feeding them, put them down for naps, and keep the noise volume down around them during their sleep time. Blake ran her hands through her hair, catching locks between her knuckles and clutching tight. This was not okay.

When the class was released at the end of the lesson, both Sun and Blake were afraid of touching it.

Eventually, Blake reached out and grasped the basket handle, her hand timid and reluctant. The child's eyes were open and staring, though they were focused on nothing, and she carried it outside with Sun at her shoulder.

"Alright, so we have to put a plan together for this." He suggested, leaning against the wall.

Blake nodded, more to herself than anything, and leaned against the wall beside him. She watched down the hallway as their class dispersed. "If one has a class and the other doesn't, the other should have her."

"But we share a combat class on Wednesdays and Fridays." Sun frowned.

Blake cursed beneath her breath, wiping a hand over her brow. "It'll be loud in there too. And what if we both end up sparring on the training floor? Who'll take care of it?" Blake gave Eliza a disgusted look, holding the basket by a few thin fingers.

"We might just have to keep her on the side and leave training if she needs anything."

Blake sighed, a pounding headache forming beneath her skull. "Alright. Should we rotate nights too?"

"Definitely." He said, nodding.

"So who'll take first night?"

For several seconds, neither said a word. They stared at each other, hoping the other would volunteer, until Sun sighed and lowered his head. "I guess I will." He reached his hand out.

"Wait, don't you have a class in a few hours?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't have any more today." Blake said, looking down at the baby. "I'll hold onto her until after your class ends around four."

Sun nods, a smile growing on his face. He straightens and swings his tail. "Y'know, we may pull through on this project."

"Don't jinx us." Blake responded with a faint smile tugging at the corner of her lips. The two part ways, Blake trying to hold the basket as level as possible with the bag of supplies in her other hand.

When she arrived to her team's dorm and found it empty, she let out a long groan of frustration before planting head-first into her bed, the baby basket placed neatly on the table. Several minutes later, Blake was asleep.

It was very disorienting when she woke up thirty minutes later, because someone was moving in the room, and there was a baby crying, and her name was being called over and over again until she answered with a half-hearted, "huh?"

When the room straightened itself before her eyes, she saw Ruby with her hands clasped over her ears. "Why is there a baby doll in here?! Make it stop crying, Blake!" She yelled above the noise, wincing.

Blake grumbled, pulling herself to her feet and dragging herself across the room. When she reached the table she frowned, looking down at it while she yelled and flailed her small arms. What had Ms. Russet said? It's cries have differences depending on what it wants. It's not like she knew what they were...

So, deciding to copy her fellow students, she pulled out one of the fake diapers and replaced the old one. The baby did not stop flailing and crying, and she let out a loud whine with frustration before stabbing the end of the bottle into the baby's mouth. Eliza hushed immediately, and the doll emitted quiet sucking noises as Blake picked up the child from the basket and held the bottle to her mouth.

Ruby was staring at her from over Blake's arm. "What is that? It's so loud..." She complained, frowning.

"It's my Home Economics project." Blake sighed tiredly, stepping away from the table with Eliza in the crook of her arm.

Ruby gave her a look.

Blake sighed again. "It's a baby simulator. I have to pretend this is my child and I have to take care of her for two weeks."

The younger frowned dramatically. "You mean it's going to be living with us for two weeks?"

"Somewhat. I'm paired up with Sun, so he'll take care of her sometimes."

Ruby let out a soft "Oh" before she turned away, climbing into her top bunk. "Does it cry a lot?"

"Don't know." Blake sat down on her bed, overrun with fatigue. The plastic baby still sucked on the fake bottle. "I just got her an hour ago."

"Her?" Ruby cocked an eyebrow. "Does she have a name?"

"Eliza, I think."

Ruby laid down in her bed, and for several moments, the room was dead silent. And then, Ruby muttered to her, "Y'know, Weiss isn't going to like Eliza."

"I know." Blake sighed for probably the fifteenth time that night. Ruby said no more. When the baby stopped sucking on the bottle, Blake awkwardly turned Eliza around and patted her back until she made a burping sound effect, just as Ms. Russet had taught.

From on top of Ruby's bed, Blake heard a stifling of laughter follow the noise. And then it was silent once more, and Blake could put the child back in the basket.

She returned to her nap immediately, intent on getting some sleep before she had to start on her homework.

So when she was forcefully pulled out of her sleep an hour later to the baby crying again, Blake was less than impressed. And worse, Weiss and Yang were in the room now. Blake sat up slowly and rubbed at her eyes, tuning in to Weiss's voice. "-Thing is so loud! What on earth is it doing in here?! Is this a prank? Did someone sneak this thing in here? Hang on, I'll take care of it-"

Seconds passed before it clicked what the pony-tailed girl had actually said. "No!" Blake shot up just as Weiss picked the doll up by it's foot and moved towards the open window. "No, no don't." She said more gently this time, nearing her.

Weiss gave her the most disgusted look as Blake took Eliza from her. "This thing is yours? Make it shut up!" Weiss whined, her hands clasping into fists at her sides as Blake moved to the basket. She could only assume that the baby needed a diaper change since she just fed her. And this time, she got it first try. Points to Blake.

When the room fell silent once more, Blake let out a sigh of relief. "Blake?" Yang asked, her arms crossed. "Care to spill?"

And like she had told Ruby, she explained the project to them. Ruby, however, took the news a lot better than these two, who looked horrified at the thought of a baby sharing their living space.

However, when a little after four o'clock rolled around, the knock at the door meant freedom for Blake. She pulled the door open with the baby basket and bag in hand. Sun stood, looking somewhat unenthusiastic, leaning against the doorframe as he was handed the stuff.

"So what's the verdict?" He asked.

"She's a nuisance." She thrusted the basket into his arms. He held it close, looking up at Blake with sad puppy eyes. 

Still, she was gentle as she spoke. "We both have different morning classes tomorrow at the same time. Who'll take her?"

Sun perked up a little, digging with a free hand for his phone. "Okay so, I got this app, right? And when you shake it, it flips a coin at random. How about we decide that way?" He suggested, opening the phone to the app.

Blake stared at it for a few seconds before smiling a little. "Fine, I call heads."

"Tails then." He calls for himself, flicking his own tail as he does so. He shakes the phone and holds it level as the two stare at it, until it lands heads-up on the screen.

Blake let out a frustrated sigh. "Alright, I'll take her to History tomorrow. Then we have combat training at one."

Sun smiled and shifted his hold on the basket. "Ahh, see? We're gonna do fine, we got this." He said with a grin, and Blake released a soft chuckle before closing the door between them.


	3. The Sparring

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Changed the chapter count because I think this is going to go on for a lot longer than I anticipated. Hope you're enjoying the story, guys! Appreciate the kudos!

It's two in the morning when there's a frantic, panicked knock at team RWBY's door. The team (excluding Yang, who's a heavy sleeper) wake up at the sound, startled into sitting positions. Seconds after the knocking stops, Blake can hear the muffled sound of a baby crying on the other side of the door, and Sun's voice say, "Blake, help!"

She rolls out of bed with a yawn and shivers, reaching the door and opening it to reveal Sun, who is shirtless and in sweatpants, with little Eliza in his arms. She's crying, and Sun looks frazzled. "I can't- I can't figure out what's wrong. I changed the diaper, I fed her a bottle, I just- nothing's working and the bar's going down."

"What? Let me see." Blake frowned, taking Eliza from him and turning her over. Sure enough, the blue bar was no longer full, but it wasn't too bad either. It was slowly depleting, but at a pace that didn't seem too drastic. Blake released a sigh and looked her over, not finding anything wrong.

"Did you put her in sleep mode for the night?" She asked.

"Yeah, I did before I went to bed!" Sun ran a hand trough his messy blond hair. "I don't- I don't know what could be wrong with her.

Blake bit her lip. "Hurry up, I'm trying to sleep in here!" Came Weiss's voice from behind her, and the faunus flicked her ear beneath her sleep-bow unconsciously.

"You changed her diaper, you held her, you fed her..." Sun nodded as she spoke, looking on edge. She curled the flailing doll to her side. "Did you burp her after you fed her?"

"Yeah I-" Sun stopped short, clamping his mouth shut. "No. No, I didn't."

Blake held the baby up to her shoulder and patted at it's back. Eventually the crying ceased, and then it played the burping sound effect. Once done, Blake pulled the doll away and handed her back to Sun by the doll's armpits.

He looked horrible, his expression one of pure embarrassment and guilt as he received the plastic doll. "Sorry."

"It's alright." Blake sighed, massaging the headache growing once more.

"Thank you, I uh, I'm really sorry for waking you up." He apologized again, looking afraid that she would be mad at him.

She waved her hand. "Don't worry about it. We need a good grade on this project."

Sun nodded to himself, and then without another word, Blake closed the door.

"Is this what it's going to be like for the next few weeks?" Weiss asked, venom in her tired voice as Blake dragged her feet across the room, "Because if it is, I might have to move into Team CFVY's room."

Blake's bed squeaked as she fell into it, and seconds later, she was fast asleep. 

After that, it was thankfully a peaceful night. Blake woke up that morning with a yawn and a stretch. She really wanted to keep sleeping. Ruby and Yang were already up and dressing, and Weiss was doing her make-up in the far mirror. Blake scratched her head and rolled out of bed, feeling too tired to be awake. Sunlight filtered into the room in rays, illuminating Blake's pale skin as she stepped into the light. She almost hissed. Her skin felt clammy and cold, and she was about to crawl back under the covers and sleep for another few hours.

They all left the room at different times, and Blake was last to depart to her History class. Once she got there, she spotted Sun leaning against the wall beside her classroom door, baby basket in hand, and he gave everyone an awkward nod as they passed him until he spotted Blake.

Sun looked absolutely exhausted. There were bags under his eyes, and his tail was dragging behind him, the tip wafting the ground.

"How was she?" Blake asked, taking the basket from him.

"Horrible." He wiped a hand over his face. "She kept crying like every two hours."

"Why?"

"For every reason possible."

Blake sighed, looking down at the doll. "Well, guess it's my turn then." She muttered.

Sun bid her goodbye and she entered her classroom, putting the baby basket on the table and taking her seat beside Velvet. It was still a few minutes before the class would start, so Blake pulled out one of her books and tried to finish up the chapter before the bell would ring.

But before she could even open it, Nora walked into the classroom with an expression Blake had never seen on the tiny girl before. She looked absolutely pissed.

"Nora?" Blake asked, waving for her attention. "Is everything okay?"

The carrot-headded girl spun around at her name, crossing her arms. "Ask Jaune." She pointed with her chin as the blonde boy entered behind her, a pink baby basket in the crook of his arm.

"You guys are doing the Baby Simulator project too?" Blake asked.

Nora nodded curtly. "And I got paired with Jaune."

"So..." Blake drummed her knuckles on the table. "Why are you upset?"

Nora didn't answer with words. Instead, she marched over to where Jaune had put the basket down and picked up the doll from the blankets.

At least, she picked up what was left of it.

The doll was scratched up and mended with duct tape around several limbs, little breaks in the skin scattered over the left side. One of it's eyes was missing. Blake's eyes widened, and Velvet gasped beside her. "What happened to him?" Velvet breathed, ears flickering downwards with surprise and pity.

"Jaune dropped him off the Academy roof." Nora gave him a pointed look. Half the class, who had tuned in to the conversation, swiveled their shocked gazes to the boy.

"It- It was an accident!" Jaune jumped to defend himself, waving his arms dramatically as he shrunk under the eyes of the class.

"It's only been one day!" Blake half-shouted, pulling Eliza closer to herself. "How did you manage that?"

"It- Pyrrha and I were on the top balcony of the Academy, and- and we were practicing- and Jimmy was sitting at the edge of the roof, and... I sort of... accidentally knocked him over the edge when we got too close." He winced, his arms up defensively.

Velvet stared at him, her brown eyes wide with disbelief. Blake covered her face with her hand.

The class started shortly after, and the only other interesting thing that happened was when Jaune and Nora's baby began to cry. It sounded robotic and metallic, and definitely broken. A few kids in the classroom snickered. Blake wondered how much of their baby's bar went down for that. Probably a lot. Nora was also keeping the baby closer to herself now, taking care of the problem when he started to cry. Jaune had his head in his hands, looking guilty and ashamed. Blake didn't blame him; she wouldn't want to be seen again if she managed to knock a baby off a six-story roof.

~

When combat training rolled around, Blake was relieved. She felt stiff, tired, and ready to let off some steam.

Sun tottered over to her just moments before the class was supposed to start, looking even more out of it than before. While she was curious, Blake didn't really want to go through the effort of asking. He probably took a nap and just woke up for class. Eliza's basket sat at their feet, surprisingly still quiet.

Ms. Goodwitch announced that she would be pairing everyone for one-on-one sparring. Blake was paired with Pyrrha. While many would be dissapointed to be paired with the undefeated student, Blake secretly felt excited at the challenge. Last time she faced off with Pyrrha was... well... with breadsticks in the School's cafeteria. Besides, Blake needed to get out of her stiff muscles, and Pyrrha was probably the best choice for that. She'd make the fight last long, that's for sure. Even if Blake was going to lose.

The pairs went one at a time in the arena, and when it came to Blake and Pyrrha's turn, Blake turned to Sun and found him fast asleep. He was leaning on his arms, head held up with his hands, but his eyes were closed and his breath was heavy and slow. Blake smiled to herself, gently patting his unruly golden hair before turning around and making her way down to the arena. If the baby needed anything, it would have no trouble waking him up, that's for sure. Though, for Sun's sake, she hoped Eliza wouldn't need anything.

When Blake and Pyrrha came face to face after preparing themselves in the locker rooms, they nodded at each other with small smiles. Pyrrha looked a little tired herself. It was then that Blake remembered; Jaune and Nora have that baby doll in their room. Pyrrha was probably dealing with the side effects of it's endless crying as well. And Blake, having an almost full-night's rest, looked more awake and ready than she did.

It didn't mean she could beat her, though.

Blake charged first, veins pounding with adrenaline, and she drew her sword last second. The end of it collided full-force with Pyrrha's shield before the red-haired girl swung her body around and out of the way. Her ponytail slapped Blake in the face and she reeled, falling backwards as Pyrrha slashed with her weapon. Blake pulled back, her aura taking the brunt, and Pyrrha paused, waiting for the faunus to collect herself.

Letting out a grunt and fixing her stance, Blake reminded herself that no matter how tired Pyrrha got, she still knew how to channel her energies. She had a really powerful aura, Blake knew.

When Blake was ready, Pyrrha charged forward, tossing her spear as Blake dodged to the left and rolled, the world spinning for half a moment before she was on her feet again. Her muscles screamed with both pain and pleasure, thriving on the quick pace of the fight. While her opponent hurried towards her discarded weapon, Blake surged forward and brought her sword down onto Pyrrha's shield, subtly pulling the interior sword from it and positioning her grasp on it. There she ducked and spun her legs under Pyrrha's ankles, knocking her opponent off balance.

The red-haired woman only lost her touch for half a second, and then she was back-flipping backwards, retrieving her spear.

Pyrrha jumped at her, spinning last second and kicking Blake in the side hard. The black-haired girl crossed her arms and brought one sword down on Pyrrha's shoulder before she lost her balance completely, and them she was swiveling to avoid Pyrrha's leap. She was not going to get pinned down, not already!

Blake brought her sword down on her opponent, but Pyrrha's hands were on Blake's shoulders, the red-haired girl doing a handspring over the faunus and landing on the other side in one smooth motion. Planting one foot hard against the ground, Blake spun herself around and used the momentum to land a hit to Pyrrha with her sword.

Once they were face to face, they encountered a brief sword cross, their blades clinging and ringing against each other as each made contact with heavy force.

The cry of a child startled Blake out of focus, and her head turned reflexively to find the source of the sound.

That's how Pyrrha's sword made a brutal, heavy contact with her left shoulder.

Blake had her aura to protect her, yes, but it could only handle so much brunt before it physically affected her. And that's what it was doing now, especially with her lack of concentration to the attack. With a cry of pain and the drop of her swords, she stumbled away from the fight, Pyrrha looking horrified and pulling back as well. "I'm sorry!" She said, taking a moment before walking towards Blake to look at the damage.

It didn't seem too bad; the shock of it was worse than the wound itself. Blake put a hand on her shoulder and focused on breathing, her body still shaking with adrenaline. She turned her gaze upwards to look at where Sun was, watching as he picked up sobbing little Eliza from her basket.

"Blake! You okay?!" He called, standing up with his eyes wide and tail lashing. 

"I'm fine." She called back rather tiredly, taking Pyrrha's hand and pulling herself up. A small trickle of blood escaped the wound on her shoulder, but otherwise wasn't too bad. Sometimes Blake wondered what their fights would be like if they didn't have their aura to protect themselves. Blake might have lost her arm with a swing like that. She shivered at the thought, turning her head to watch the faint glow of her aura as it went to work healing the wound. Ms. Goodwitch approached them, overseeing the trouble.

"Are you fit to keep going, Miss Belladonna?" Ms. Goodwitch asked, stepping forward to make sure her shoulder was okay.

"Ah- no, I'd like to forfeit." Blake replied, embarassed for cutting it so short. But she really didn't want to try holding a sword in that hand now; It needed rest. 

"Do you need to go to the infirmary?" Ms. Goodwitch crossed her arms. She looked frustrated, but Blake sensed a hint of concern.

Blake shook her head anyway, putting her good hand over the cut. "I'll be okay. Thank you, ma'am."

She and Pyrrha took a moment to bid farewells and give casual sportsmanship before they exited the arena, the banners hanging from the ceiling signaling Pyrrha's victory. Blake didn't mind.

She took her spot beside Sun and the class continued, the duo's eyes heavy with much needed rest that they knew they weren't going to get. At least, not until after the next two weeks are up.

Sun was chastising her, insisting that she go to the infirmary to at least get a bandage for the cut. Blake shook her head, knowing that after a night's sleep the aura would have cleared it up. Even now, the presence was there, eating at the dead skin and regrowing. It just, it usually works a lot faster than that. But Blake was too tired to activate it in a swifter pace now.

So, the two endured the rest of the class, Eliza sitting in the basket at their feet. Sun fell asleep again halfway through, and Blake had to wake him up when it was his turn to spar. He gave her a nod of thanks and stood, looking rough as he passed her on his way to the locker rooms.

Blake sat back, looking down at the doll at her feet. She put a hand over the wound, her eyes narrow. "You're going to be the death of both of us, aren't you?" She muttered under her breath.

The baby's fake eyes only stared at the roof, the picture of pure innocence.


	4. Chapter 4

"Miss Belladonna."

Blake stirred, the classroom coming into focus. Her head was nestled into something warm, and her arms were crossed at her chest. The sight of Ms. Russet staring down at her caught her off guard, and she slowly shifted, only stopping when she realized what the warmth beside her was. She had fallen asleep with her head on Sun's shoulder in the middle of class.

Glancing over at him now, she found him jump at the movement she made, causing them both to groggily lift their heads and glance at the teacher. Ms. Russet shook her own head at them in frustration. "I'd appreciate it if you did not fall asleep in my class" was all she said, gaze full of malicious intent, before turning heel and returning to the lecture.

Sun yawned beside her, stretching his arms high above his head and dropping his jaw. Blake sighed, glancing at the baby basket on the table.

It had been seven days- a full week since the project had started. When Blake swept her gaze across the rest of the class, it seemed as though they were all suffering from this project just like she was. Juggling rigorous training as well as caring for an infant was definitely proving to be difficult.

Blake ran a hand across her face, trying to hide the red sleepiness her skin had taken tone of. At least that night, Sun would take Eliza. Blake was tired of the baby's crying. And Weiss's complaining.

"Now then." Ms. Russet tapped her fingers along her desk as she looked over the classroom. "I understand that tomorrow you all will be heading off on a field trip to the forests. The timing of this project was intentional, as now you are going to be challenged with protecting the infant whilst outside the walls of this campus. It will not be easy, but you must learn to fight with handicaps."

Blake huffed. The field trip had been announced yesterday much to their dismay, and she was not happy. 

Glancing at Sun, she opened her mouth to say something only to find him fast asleep with his head on his hand, and his elbow planted on the table. Softly rolling her eyes, though wishing she could go back to sleep as well, she decided to fill him in later.

"I'm going to ask the teachers to make sure you keep the infant on you in case you find yourself engaged in combat with Grimm. Do not place them down to fight- you don't know what kind of Grimm could sneak his way over and harm it while you're occupied..." Ms. Russet went on, and Blake fought for focus.

The sound of a baby crying across the room made Blake put her head in her hands, fighting to overcome her throbbing headache.

The next week couldn't go by faster.

~

Despite all the downsides to this project, Sun and Blake had been fortunate so far to get stuck in the same places. For instance, as the field trip split into smaller groups, their teams were still placed together. Maybe it was intentional. Blake wouldn't put it past Ms. Russet to rig the team assignments so the pairs could work together.

They were supposed to be gathering supplies from one of the various herb gardens planted back in the depths of the forests. Blake really didn't pay attention to the details. She was going to focus on trying not to get spotted by Grimm so she wouldn't have to fight with Eliza's basket in the crook of her arm. Sun strolled beside her, glancing over the forests with his tail flickering.

"Why did you bring her along?" Yang asked as she suddenly fazed in beside Blake, almost startling her.

The purple eyes were wide. Blake realized she really hasn’t had time to hang out with her team lately. Not with this child. She missed it. "I have to." Blake replied, sighing in the direction of her partner, who had turned away to look around the forests. "We can't let anyone else watch over her or leave her alone."

Yang squinted down at the doll. "Who's to know that you left her in the room?"

"If she cries and we don't respond, the bar goes down." Blake replied.

"Well." Yang frowned and glanced over at Sun, who seemed oblivious to Yang even being there. He was lost in his own world, and Blake’s team partner took that opportunity. Yang lowered her voice to a whisper. "How's it going between you too?" She cracked a half smile, looking for a blush in Blake’s cheeks.

"I... don't know what you mean." Blake turned her gaze away.

"Don't play dumb with me, now. Have you guys been spending time together? Hanging out? Getting to know each other?" She winked.

"Yang, please." Blake rolled her eyes, but kept her face looking somewhere else. Yang was scary good at reading faces, and the black clad girl wasn’t exactly in the mood.

"What? Come on, you're both playing mom and dad for two weeks. I'm just saying, there are more ways to play the part than just caring for a baby."

Blake narrowed her eyes, finally turning back to her.

Yang sighed, looking hopeless. "Have you guys even had an opportunity to just chill around each other?"

"Been kinda hard to with the baby." Blake gestured down at it with her eyes.

The baby stared lifelessly up at them, the picture of innocence.

"Look," She started, "Let me take it for a bit while you two have a nice walk to the herb garden. Chill, relax, have a chat with him! Flirt! Be a teenager!"

Blake hesitated, staring at her. The first thing her brain did was wave a warning flag. The second thing it did was crush the warning flag in half and swallow it whole. "Do you know what to do if it cries?" She asked warily.

"I've only seen you do it like a hundred times in the dorm." Yang leaned against her, throwing an arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, mama Blake. Auntie Yang's got it all under control." She winked.

Blake bit her lip, looking down at the plastic doll. "Alright." She gave in with a sigh, passing the cradle into Yang's arms. "Come find me if you have any trouble."

Yang gave an enthusiastic salute before nudging Blake in the direction of Sun. The teen sighed, running her now-free hand through her hair, watching Yang retreat back to the rest of the crowd, where Ruby and Weiss were chatting.

Their trek through the woods shouldn't have been that much farther, but it had to be enough for conversation. Blake joined Sun's side and he turned his head, suddenly going rigid. "Blake... where's Eliza?"

"Yang offered to carry her for a while."

Sun hesitated, throwing a gaze over to where Yang was. "You sure that's okay?"

"Out of all of us, Yang's probably the most capable of caring for a child." Blake replied, glancing in the same direction. At least he wasn’t protesting. 

"We should have left Eliza with her sooner." Sun laughed, his tail twirling. Blake’s heart warmed, feeling more relaxed now that she and Sun mutually agreed to take a break, and she felt fatigue wash over her. "How you holding up?"

"I'm exhausted."

"Same."

She rubbed at her arm, which was sore from carrying the basket for so long. "I liked it better when we just baked pies." She said, closing her eyes and enjoying the sun's warmth leaking through the leaf canopy. Sun muttered an agreement with a small chuckle on the side, and they fell into comfortable silence.

Maybe Yang intended for them to talk, or flirt, or something. But as they walked, they realized all they needed for a while was some peace and quiet.

~

The herb garden was bigger than Blake expected, stretched out in a field in the middle of the forest. The students immediately went to work gathering the necessary things, but Sun caught Blake's arm before she could near the garden.

She bounced him a questioned glance before he pulled her a few steps away from everyone. "How about we slip away for a while. They're going to be at this for a bit, let's go take a nap while Yang watches Eliza."

Blake hesitated, glancing back at where Yang had settled down beside Velvet by the garden. The basket arm was firm in Yang’s grasp, and she was even showing it to Velvet, who chuckled and placed a hand on the plastic doll’s cheek.

"Come on, just fifteen minutes. They won't even notice we're gone."

Blake glanced up at Sun and found his face to be worn, with bags under his eyes and eyebrows shifted tiredly. She admitted, she probably looked the same. This wasn’t just his usual shenanigans- they needed a break. Between caring for the child, training, and looking into White Fang information to uncover more of their plot, Blake felt suffocated. Especially due to the last part. "Alright." She said softly, glancing back at the scattered group as she took Yang's old advice to heart. "Just fifteen minutes."

As soon as she said yes he smiled, taking her hand and tugging her sideways with a gentle pull. She fell into step behind him, heading for the thicker parts of the forest surrounding the garden. The sun was pretty high up, and Blake guessed it was around two. The anxious feeling that they would be caught sneaking away faded soon enough, and it took a few tired moments for Blake to realize Sun was still leading her by the hand.

Sun stopped after the short trek, eyeing some of the trees before letting go of Blake’s hand and leaping into the branches of one. He leaned down and took her hand, not so much helping but guiding her up the direction he was trying to go.

This particular tree had a heavy tangle of branches twisting in different directions. Sun had managed to find, much to Blake’s amazement, a very comfortable spot arranged by the branches themselves. He laid down in the branches, motioning for Blake to join his side.

“I love finding trees like this.” He muttered, mirroring her thoughts. She mustered a rare smile as she laid down beside him, resting her head on his shoulder.

“Don’t fall asleep.” Blake reminded him, fighting to keep consciousness despite her closed eyes. Just a break. The sunlight that broke through the canopy of leaves felt warm on her skin.

“Can’t promise.” Sun replied breathily. His arm snaked around her shoulders as he leaned his messy golden locks on her head. He felt warm.

“Mmm.”

It wasn’t long before sleep took them both under.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay between chapters- I haven't had a lot of inspiration to work on this with. However, thanks to the positive feedback you guys have given me, it's really motivated me to keep going. I'm gonna start planning it through and attempt to finish it, and now all I want to do is keep writing. Thank you guys so much.


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